Mattel Unveil New Tomb Raider Barbie

Over the past decade or so, Barbie makers Mattel have been making great strides in updating the image of their iconic doll. Often criticised as sexist and a bad example for young girls, recent years have seen the Barbie range diversify with Astronaut and Scientist dolls joining the line. For their latest addition however, Mattel are set to release a Tomb Raider Barbie, just in time for the movie reboot of the Tomb Raider franchise. Like Barbie, the classic video game series has in the past been criticised for its portrayal of women, but under the stewardship of Crystal Dynamics and Square Enix a conscious decision was made to depict a more ‘natural’ and self-sufficient Lara Croft. This new Barbie clearly fits in with this new direction for the Tomb Raider franchise.

The doll itself eschews Barbie’s traditional blonde bonnet for Croft’s darker locks and comes equipped with a map, a journal and a nasty looking pick-axe (taking her cue from Fossil Hunter Lottie). She’ll also come dressed in full length cargo-pants and tank top that we’ve come to expect from the latest incarnation of our iconic heroine. The inclusion of a number of bandages adds an extra bit of rough and tumble to the set, showing once and for all that Barbie is putting that dream house behind her. This new addition to the iconic Barbie range should be available sometime this week with a retail price somewhere in the €30 region. The release comes just a month before Alicia Vikander takes to our screens as the latest actress to take up the Lara Croft mantel on March 16th.